INSTITUTIONAL MINISTRIES

12/23/16

INTRODUCTION TO PART 4 --INSTITUTIONAL MINISTRY

In 2003 most Americans
lived in one of 93 million households; however, millions of others were not so
fortunate. In fact, in the world it is estimated that there are 100 million
street kids, one fourth of which exist in Latin America. More alarming is the
estimate that there are two to three times that number who are pre-street kids.
Part of the problem is the restructuring of the American household. The high
rate of divorce destabilizes the home which is typically headed by one parent,
which often puts the household into poverty level existence with the mother as
the breadwinner, and minimal supervision of the children. With the advent of
same-sex civil unions came the disastrous elimination of the input of the
opposite sex partnerís input into the lives of the children. Interracial
marriage, now approved by 70% of whites, 77% of Hispanics and 80% of blacks,
often puts a serious strain on the children, who must struggle with their
personal racial identity.

Hollywood continues to have a
negative effect upon the family, presenting fathers as bumbling, ineffectual,
clueless figures who are uncaring. Industry leaders carelessly portray the
concept that the traditional family unit is passť and alternate life styles as
being the in thing. The pop music industry presents a steady diet of dark and
angry music favored by today's teenagers who feel abandoned by thoughtless
parents who spend most of their time working, or not there at all. The
'abandoned generation' as they are sometimes called, have been abandoned in many
ways. Two-thirds of Black children and twenty percent of White children lived
with the insecurity of parents who never bothered to marry. Countless others
have been abandoned by divorce. Some studies show that fathers often only spend
5 minutes a day with their children.

Studies show that children
born out of wedlock are 51% more likely to be poor than those born with intact
families. The absence of marriage increases the likelihood of living in poverty
by 700%. One study indicates that 87% of those incarcerated were from
single-parent families. Other studies show that an area's crime rate can be
predicted by its illegitimacy rate. Growing up without role models often leads
to gender confusion such as hyper masculinity [ie, macho aggression, predatory
sex], hyper femininity [ie, sex objects] or homosexuality. [reported by Gene
Veith in WORLD 2-05, p25]

America, as a highly
developed society, has created institutions where certain segments of society
are given constant care under circumstances that basically isolate them from the
rest of society. This isolation may be involuntary as in the case of those who
are incarcerated in penal institutions.

Others are resident in
facilities that may be called institutions of mercy because they were
created for those who cannot help themselves. These institutions include
children's homes for the orphaned, abused or abandoned children, and other
facilities for the severely handicapped. Then there are the rest homes
and geriatric wards for those advanced in age or incapacitated by illness
or accident.

A third kind of
institution is the military establishment. In it are men and women who
have committed themselves to a term of service or to a military career. They are
effectively removed from family, friends, and church for periods of time,
especially those who have multiple deployments. Then there is the tragedy of
Post Traumatica Stress Disorder and high suicide rate.

Finally, there is the
educational community. America offers extensive opportunities for
advancement in knowledge both in the public and private sectors. Americans
become members of educational groups very early in life. They progress through
various facilities from kindergarten through graduate schools. With the
secularization of education, students are progressively separated and alienated
from the teachings of the evangelical church.

The church has responded
in two ways. First, it has created parochial schools to provide an
alternative educational opportunity. Second, it has established missions
that have sought various ways to provide Christian teaching in the educational
community, whether by released-time classes on the elementary level,
Bible clubs in the secondary schools, or missionaries on the college
campus.

Institutional ministries
are necessary for several reasons. In most instances the residents of the
institutions cannot go to church or have not been exposed to the
teachings of the evangelical church. Second, institutions run by the state are
reluctant to provide religious teaching using public funds or facilities lest
they violate the principle of separation of church and state. Therefore,
only a minimal number of chaplains are engaged for service, and they are
required to minister to members of more than their own faith.

Third, the church
cannot provide regular, specialized spiritual ministry to the residents of
institutions with its in-house programs. At best it ministers evangelistically
and inspirationally to these isolated groups, but seldom pastorally. Finally,
the average Christian is often unprepared to cope with the problems of
the institutional resident nor is he experienced in communicating his faith in
that context.